Abigail's Been Kidnapped
by riley-poole27
Summary: Abigail's gets kidnapped, and it's up to Ben, Riley and Ian to get her back.
1. Chapter 1

It was a sweltering day, the heat was rising in waves off the pavement. Abigail Chase, a blonde woman in her thirties, flipped through a rack of summer dresses. She was wearing a sleeveless shirt, and a pair of navy blue shorts. The street was filled with kids running around with face paint and balloons, and teenagers with skateboards tucked under their arms. It was the first street festival of the summer, and it was jampacked full of people, because the weather had warmed up considerably this week.

She suddenly felt a prickling sensation on the back of her neck, the feeling that she was being watched. Abigail turned around, and scanned the crowd. Nobody was paying her any mind. "Weird," She thought, turning back to the vendor's stall. She continued to browse, dismissing the unnerving feeling.

Abigail finally decided on a blue paisley dress, and a pair of white sandals. She paid the vendor, then walked down the road to watch the live band. They were good, she thought, as she listened to the teenaged garage band. Not something she'd normally listen to, so she passed up the merchandise table. Abigail ordered a hotdog with saurkraut, and a coke from the food truck, and sat down at the picnic table.

As she was about to take a bite, the certainty returned that she was being observed. She lowered the bun, and looked around her. Nothing. Again. She wanted to chalk it up to paranoia, but she was unnerved. Abigail decided that it was time to go home. She got up, and walked to her car. Had she turned around again, she would've noticed a figure staring intently at her from the crowd.

By the time Abigail arrived home, she'd completely forgotten about being watched. She emptied the bags of groceries out of the trunk of her car, and rushed to put them in the freezeer before the melted in the heat. As she was putting the food away, her phone jangled in her pocket. She pulled it out, seeing Ben Gates, her husband's name on the screen.

"Hey Dear," She said, putting the phone into the crook of her neck.

"Abi, I'm at the airport. My flight from Paris is delayed. I won't be home until tomorrow morning." Ben told her.

She was disappointed that Ben wouldn't be coming back that night. Riley had helped her plan a special dinner for his return, as he'd been in France for two weeks at a conference.

As soon as she got off the phone with Ben, she called Riley to let him know that the dinner would be postponed.

"Oh man," Riley said, crestfallen. They arranged to have the dinner tomorrow night at eight PM.

Abigail took the beef steaks off the counter, and put them in the fridge alongside the blueberry pie, and tub of potato salad. She'd purchased the steaks at the local butcher's, and the pie was from one of the vendors at the street festival. "So much for the BBQ," She thought, as she grabbed a book and curled up on the couch.

When the phone rang hours later, the jangling noise startled her in the deathly quiet house. She picked up the receiver, and held it to her ear. 

"Hello, Gates Residence." She said. There was a harsh breathing sound on the other end, followed by an audible click. She hung up, then returned to her book.

Ten minutes later, the phone rang again. She thought about letting it ring until the crank caller finally gave up, but she felt angry. This was her house, Verdammt! She ddin't need to be fearful in her own gingerly picked it up, and listened to the heavy breathing. She could hear a few muffled sounds, but nothing recognizable.

"Who is this? Why are you calling me?" She yelled, hearing the person on the other end start to laugh in a high-pitched giggle. The line went dead.

Abigail stared at the antique phone, wishing that they had caller ID. She regretted not buying the cordless phone at the Best Buy the previous week. Something a bit more modern, with a digital screen was what they needed.

When the phone rang for the third time, she picked it up mid-ring, and held it to her ear.

"Whoever this is, I'm calling the police! Arschloch! Stop calling me!" She shouted, hoping to scare away the prank caller.

"Abigail?" a voice said, sounding surprised. She knew that voice. It was Riley.

"Riley, you've got some nerve, prank calling me! That's not funny!" Abigail told him, hotly.

"What! No! I - " Riley stammered, sounding hurt. "I called to ask if you wanted me to bring anything to the BBQ tomorow!" He said.

"Oh." She replied, feeling silly. She quickly apologized. "I was shopping today, and I could've sworn somebody was watching me. Now I've been getting all these weird phone calls."

"Do you want me to come over?" Riley asked. "Keep you company until Ben gets home tomorrow." He suggested.

"No, that's okay." She told him. "I'm sure it's nothing. I'll see you tomorrow." She hung the phone, and was about to pick up her book when the doorbell rang.

She peered through the glass keyhole, and saw a woman in a UPS uniform. The woman had her brown hair tied in a bun, and was holding a small parcel.

"Who is it?" Abigail called out.

"UPS, ma'am. I have a parcel for a Mrs. Abigail Chase. You need to sign for it."

Abigail opened the door, and took the box. It was light, and rattled slightly. She took the small machine and started to electronically sign her name. She turned her back on the woman for a moment to put the parcel on the table. Abigail shrieked when she was grabbed from behind, as a handkerchief was clamped over her mouth. She inhaled the sweet scent, and fell limp in her attacker's arms.

"Bring her to the truck!" the woman called out, as two men entered the house, and carried Abigail to the UPS truck parked in front of the house.


	2. Chapter 2

Ben wearily got out of the taxi, lugging his two large suitcases to the door. He opened the door, and walked in. It was five PM, and Ben was glad to be home.

"Abigail?" He called out. "I'm home!"

Ben took off his jacket, and hung it up on the hook. He noticed the UPS parcel sitting on the stairs, and picked it up. It was a parcel in Abigail's name. Ben wondered what it was, since he didn't recall her ordering anything recently.

"Honey? Are you here?" He asked, carrying the parcel into the kitchen. He set it on the table, and poured a glass of water. He opened the box, and peered inside. The sole contents of the box was a sealed envelope with his name written neatly in black ink. Curious, he opened the envelope and unfolded the single sheet of paper.

"Dear Mr. Gates,

We have your wife. If you want to see her alive again, do not call the police or the FBI. If you do, we will send your wife's body to you in a box. We require your services, and will send you further instructions."

Ben sat back in his chair, aghast. Was this somebody's idea of a cruel, sick joke? He hoped that's all it was. The note sent chills through him. Ben stood up, and started to search the house, room by room.

"Abigail? Are you here? Abi?" He shouted out, getting more and more desperate. He picked up the phone, and dialed her cell phone number. He could hear it ringing, and saw it sitting on the nightstand beside their bed.

He dialed Riley's number.

"Riley speaking," his friend answered.

"You talk to Abigail lately?" Ben asked him, stressed.

"Yeah, sure." Riley said.

"In the last twenty-four hours? What did she say?"

Riley wondered whether Ben had found out that he'd planned a BBQ dinner with Abigail. "Why don't you ask her yourself?" Riley asked.

"She's gone."

"What? Did you guys break up? Cause I had no idea you two were having problems." Riley said. "Did you guys try couples counseling -"

"She's not here. Her cellphone is here, and I think she's been kidnapped. What did she say?" Ben interrupted, getting frusterated.

"Kidnapped?" Riley sounded surprised.

"What are you not telling me, Riley?" Ben asked him, suspicious.

Riley sighed. "We had a BBQ planned, alright? She bought steaks and stuff, we were gonna make you a surprise meal. But you can't tell her I spilled the beans, she'll kill me."

"What else did she say?"

"Abigail got a bunch of crank calls, thought it was me. Said she thought she'd been followed when she'd gone out shopping." Riley told him.

Ben clutched the phone tightly. "You need to come over irght now." He said, standing up. He hung up, then began to pace the room while he waited for Riley.

As soon as Riley rushed in, Ben handed him the letter from the UPS parcel. He watched as Riley quickly scanned the note, his face blanching.

"I think i'm gonna be sick," Riley said, rushing to the bathroom. Ben could hear him retching. When Riley came back, Ben handed him a beer from the fridge.

"Holy lord," Riley said, staring at Ben. "What do we do now?"

"We find her," Ben said, looking determined. "And we bring the sons of bitches to justice."


	3. Chapter 3

Abigail woke up, her head pounding. She felt a bit nauseous, and she had to fight the urge to throw up. Abigail looked around her, at the bare cement walls, and the boarded up window a few feet above her. She was lying on an ugly, orange couch with questionable stains on the cushions. The arm of the couch had a large rip, and there was a piece of silver duct tape straining to hold the stuffing in.

She sat up, feeling a bit dizzy. The room was drafty, but not too cold. She was glad that she was still wearing her long-sleeved shirt over her tanktop. Abigail checked her pockets, hoping that she'd still have her cellphone on her, but she came up empty. Damn, she thought.

"Hello?" Abigail called out. "Is anyone there?" When she didn't get a response, she got up, and tried the door. It was locked. Abigail tried to pry the wood nailed over the window, but it didn't budge.

With a sudden flash of inspiration, Abigail took a bobby pin out of her hair, and started to pick the lock. After a few minutes, she heard an audible click, and she quickly opened the door. She walked up the staircase, and peered through the doorway. There were two men sitting at the kitchen table, listening to a transistor radio. They had their backs to her. Abigail looked outside the screen door, and realized she wasn't in the city anymore. There was a large field full of various flowers, and overgrown weeds. She could see mountains in the distance. Snow-capped mountains.

Abigail quietly opened the screen door, hoping to make her escape. The metal door needed to be oiled, and made a horrible sound. She could hear the two men in the kitchen get up and run towards her. She bolted down the stairs, and across the grass.

"Hey! Get back here!" They called out, running after her.

Hoping to outrun them, Abigail pressed on. She gave a quick glance behind her, and saw that one of the men had stopped pursuing her. He was calling someone on his cellphone. The other man continued running after her, and eventually tackling her to the ground.

"Get off me!" Abigail shouted, scratching his face with her nails. He swore, and pulled her up to her feet.

"Carlito!" He called out to the other man. "Get over here! And bring some rope."

They tied her hands behind her back, and brought her down to the basement. Carlito saw the bobby pin still sticking out of the lock, and quickly confiscated the rest of her pins.

"You stay put." He told Abigail. "The boss is on her way, and she's pissed."

"You can't hold me prisoner! This is kidnapping! I'll have you charged!" Abigail spat at them, trying to loosen the rope around her wrists. A few minutes later, she heard a car pull up outside, then a clatter of footsteps as the two men came back downstairs.

Abigail recognized the woman standing between them as the woman who had posed as UPS the previous night. She was wearing a black pencil skirt, and a matching jacket. The woman looked angrily from Carlito to Abigail.

"I hear you tried to escape." The woman said, gritting her teeth.

"You heard right." Abigail responded. "Let me go."

The woman took three photographs out of her pocket, and lay them face up on the couch. Abigail glanced at them curiously. She was surprised to see familiar faces. The first photo was of Riley and Ben, standing in front of Ben's car. The second, was a photo of her mother and sister eating a meal in a Berlin restaurant. The third was a photo of Ben's parents, Patrick and Emily, holding hands and walking out of an antique shop.

"Where did you get these?" Abigail asked the woman, confused. Her family and friends appeared to not realize they'd been photographed.

"Telephoto lens," the woman told her. "If you try to escape again, all of these people in these photographs will be brutally killed. Their lives rest in your hands."

Abigail stared at the woman in front of her, then back down at the photos. Her husband, her mom, her sister, Riley, her in-laws. She shuddered at the thought of any of the people she loved to be killed.

"I understand." Abigail said, blinking back tears. She watched as the woman picked up the photos, and put them back in her pocket. The two men followed the woman out of the room. There was a loud click, as she locked the door behind her.


	4. Chapter 4

Ben sat at his computer, trying to figure out what they were going to do.

"We're not going to call the cops. I don't want Abigail killed. We're just going to have to find a way to get her back." Ben said, looking at Riley.

"Agreed." Riley said. "Do you have any ideas?"

Ben nodded, as he searched through his email. "Come here, I want you to read this," Ben said, pulling up an email onto the screen for Riley to read.

It was an email from Ian Howe. Ian had recently got out of jail, and was currently on probation, and had contacted Ben to ask if he'd like to meet for coffee.

"Wait, Ian's out of jail?" Riley said, surprised. This was news to him.

"Yeah, he emailed me a few weeks ago. I haven't responded yet." Ben said.

"Are you going to email him back?" Riley asked, squinting at Ben.

"We're going to take him up on that coffee. Then we're going to ask him for help getting Abigail back." Ben explained.

"Why would he help us? We put him in jail for years." Riley pointed out.

Ben shrugged. "He probably needs the money, now that he's out of jail. We can offer to pay him if he agrees to help us."

Ben and Riley arrived at Starbucks early, and sat at the far corner of the coffeehouse. They did not want to be overheard by anyone. Ian arrived a few minutes later, and sat down across the table from them. He looked about the same as when they'd last talked to him a few years ago. Ian was wearing a pair of jeans, and a wrinkled t-shirt.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise," Ian smirked at them, nodding to Ben. "What's he doing here?" Ian asked, looking at surprised to see Riley.

Ben took a sip of his drink. "Play nice, Ian. We're here to hire you, if you want the job."

"Hire me? What for?" Ian asked, confused.

Ben took out the letter he'd received, and slid it across the table. Ian read it, then looked up at Ben.

"You want my help? Did you forget I locked you in the hold of the Charlotte, and kidnapped your father?" Ian said.

"And threatened to shoot me." Riley piped up. Ian looked at Riley, and gave him a malicious grin.

"I don't regret my past actions, Poole. Except for not shooting you when I had the chance." Ian said.

Riley glared at Ian. "I hate you." He said.

"Trust me, the feeling's mutual." Ian told him. Riley opened his mouth to retort, but Ben quickly jumped in.

"Guys, knock it off. We have more pressing matters then your petty squabbling." Ben told them, rolling his eyes. "Like how 'bout we concentrate on finding my wife, alive. Abigail's been kidnapped, and I want you to help us bring her back." Ben said, putting a hand on Riley's arm to try and shut him up.

"I'm not working with him." Ian and Riley said, simultaneously.

"I agreed to meet with you, Ben. Not Riley. I refuse to work with him, he never shuts up." Ian said.

"Tough." Ben replied. "That's non-negotiable."

"How much are you planning on paying me?"Ian asked.

"A grand a day."

"Make it two grand." Ian suggested, greedily.

"Fifteen hundred." Ben said.

"Deal." Ian and Ben shook hands, and the deal was done.

Ben stood up and put his garbage in the trashbin. Ian put his arm around Riley's shoulder, and leaned in close. "Well, looks like we'll be working together again."

Riley felt uncomfortable around Ian, and tried to step away from him. Ian held him tight. "Just as a warning, if you piss me off, I will shoot you this time."

Ian let him go, and Riley backed up. Riley frowned up at him, taking a sip of his mocha. "You fancy going back to jail? I can call your parole officer and tell him you've been threatening me." Riley said, giving Ian a dirty look.

Ian took a menacing step towards him, and Riley quickly clamped his mouth shut. Ian laughed, then followed Ben out of the coffeeshop.

They drove to Ben's house, Ian following behind in his own car.

"Was this really a smart move?" Riley questioned.

Ben stared straight ahead in front of him, as they waited for the light to change. "I need her back." Ben finally said. "Even if it means hiring someone like Ian to get the job done."

"Yeah well, I don't wanna get shot or betrayed by him." Riley said, fidgeting with his seatbelt strap.

"He needs the money, we need another team member." Ben said. "This is the only plan we have. I'm sure it will work out okay."


	5. Chapter 5

There was a parcel sitting on Ben's front steps, addressed to Mr. Ben Gates. Riley noticed it as soon as he got out of the car.

"Ben," He called out. "Another UPS parcel!" Riley was about to pick it up with his bare hands, but Ben stopped him

"Don't touch it, Riley." Ben said. "I'm going to get a set of gloves, we're going to dust it for prints."

Ben went inside to put on his gloves, then picked up the box as gingerly as possible. He set it on the kitchen table. They carefully dusted the box for prints, and got two viable prints. Riley used a piece of scotch tape to peel off the prints, and put them on a piece of paper.

"Riley, can you hack into the FBI database and search for a match for those prints?" Ben asked.

"Sure. But there's a risk that we might tip off the FBI. It's a pretty secure database." Riley said.

Ian gave Riley a grin. "Aww, something the great Riley Poole can't do? That's okay Ben, I know a guy who can help us with this. Someone more skilled."

Riley straightened up, and glared up at Ian. "I said I could do it. I just don't want to risk anything happening to Abigail." He was furious at Ian for belittling him, and treating like he was subpar. He was also kind of mad at Ben for not standing up for him. Ian smirked at him.

Riley scanned the prints, and used his latop to ssearch the database. It took a few hours, but he was finally able to find a match, belonging to a Mr. Carlito Esposito. Last known address was in the Bronx, NY. He'd done time a few years ago for petty theft, and impaired driving. Riley sat back in his chair, and stared at the mugshot. He'd never recalled seeing the man before.

"How is this going to help us?" Riley asked. "I mean, how do we even know this Carlito guy is one of her kidnappers. He could be just a UPS deliveryman."

"Well, I can think of way where we can find that out right now," Ben said. He decided to call UPS, and file a fake complaint against the company. "My parcel was completely destroyed." He told them, fuming. The woman on the other end was confused, as she looked up his name and address.

"I'm sorry, sir. We haven't delivered a parcel to you in over a month." Ben thanked her, and hung up. "It wasn't sent through UPS. Somebody else has been dropping off these parcels."

While Ben was talking, Riley quickly google'd Carlito's name. He discovered that the man had a sister in Washington, DC. Riley wrote down the woman's address, and showed it to Ian and Ben.

"We should pay her a little visit." Ian suggested.

Denica Esposito was a tall woman, with short-cropped black hair. She answered the door, giving the three men a suspicious look.

"Yes?" She asked, guarded. "What can I do for you?"

"My name is Benjamin Gates. May we speak to your brother, Carlito?" Ben asked her.

Denica shook her head. "He's not home. What do you want with him?"

Ben sighed. "Well, when will he be home? We need to speak to him urgently."

"Haven't seen him in a few days." Denica told him, starting to close her door. Ian stuck his foot in the door, keeping it open.

"Where's Carlito?" Ian growled.

"I told you, he's not here. I can give you his cellphone number." She said, going back into her house. She returned with a pad of paper, and a pen. Denica scrawled her brother's phone number on the paper, and handed it to Ian.

"Here," she said, slamming the door. They heard her slide the chain across the door. Ben dialed the number, but nobody answered.


	6. Chapter 6

Ben opened the parcel, and pulled out the envelope. He pulled out the single sheet of paper, He spread it out on the table, so they could all read it.

"Dear Mr. Gates,

We require your services. If you would like to see your wife alive again, please bring the Mona Lisa with you. After we have it in our possession, you will receive a letter stating the whereabouts of your wife."

"Wait," Riley said. "They want us to steal the Mona Lisa? That's what this is all about?"

Ian sat down, and ran a hand through his blond hair. "I'm on parole. I can't be caught doing anything illegal."

"We don't really have a choice. Riley, are you in?" Ben asked. Riley nodded. "Ian, are you in or out?" Ben asked.

"In." Ian told him.

"That painting is in the louvre." Ian said, leaning back in his chair. "This is absurd. How do they expect us to get it in such a small time frame?"

"It's not in the louvre." Ben said.

Both Ian and Riley turned to look at him. "It isnt?" Ian asked.

"It's on display for the first time at the smithsonian, here in washington."

Riley gave a wry smile. "Well, that makes things a bit easier. At least we're on the same continent."

Ian wanted to use tazers to take out the guards, which Ben and Riley readily disagreed scowled at them.

"It won't kill them, they just get a shock for a while. Enough time to take the painting and get away."

Ben shook his head. "That's not how were doing it."

This enraged Ian, who was quick to point out that Ben wasn't the leader. He proposed they call a vote.

"I vote no tazers. We find another way, something that doesn't require weapons." Ben said, firmly.

"I vote with tazers." Ian told him.

Riley had to make the final decision, as he was the third voter. "Ian, I'm with Ben opn this one. We shouldn't use weapons. I know you love your guns and all, but i don't want to have any casualties."

Riley left the room, and returned his laptop. He booted it up, then opened a few tabs on the Internet. Within a few minutes, he had the blueprints of the smithsonian, and a virtual gallery.

"That was quick," Ben commented, looking over Rileys shoulder as his friend typed.

"I'm just checking out the floorplans," Riley told him, not looking from the screen. "I want to find the quickest route for you and ian."

"Make sure you hack into the security cameras and turn them off. I don't my face shown, I don't want to go back to jail." Ian said.

Riley rolled his eyes. "Obviously, the cameras will be taken care of, Ian." Riley said, sarcastically.

"And you have all the blueprints, right?" Ian asked him. "We need to have as much information as we can before going in. We don't want to be amateurs with such a job."

Riley put his hands on the table, and glared at Ian in frustration. "Will you stop?" he asked, half-shouting. "I have all the blueprints right here. I know what I'm doing. Ben and I have done this before, remember?" Riley reminded him.

Ben stood up, and went into the living room. He was getting a headache listening to those two bicker. He took a few minutes break, then returned to the kitchen table. "Riley, show us everything you can find on the smithsonian. And Ian, please stop pestering him. You're giving me a headache." Ben noticed that Ian's jaw was clenched, but he sat down and stopped his shouting.

"Alright boys, let's get to work." Ian said.


End file.
